Rape Persuasive Speech: Attention Step:

Imagine a dark street in the evening. Imagine a woman walking back home from her college or her work. Imagine that she hears footsteps following her. Do you have any idea what she feels or thinks? Yes, horror, but do you know why? She is certainly afraid of being raped, but for her, rape is much more than a sexual assault. It is also a destruction of her humanity and her existence as a normal human being in society.

Need Step:

Statement of Problem: Rape has become one of the most serious problems in modern societies, and it is therefore urgent to deal with this problem.

Explanation of Problem: Rape is often seen as a means through which some males tend to assert their domination over women. Sometimes it is seen as a crime against women. And on other times, it is seen as a violation of human rights. In fact, rape is all of these and much more. Rape is a destruction of a woman’s sense of humanity, a humiliation for her self and her identity, and devastating experience that will traumatize her life for many years.

According to James M. Henslin in his book Social Problems, rape crimes are of several types. In some cases, the victim suffers from sexual assault in addition to body injury or even murder. Sometimes it is a boyfriend raping his girlfriend, his neighbor or cousin. Even those husbands who force their wives into sexual intercourse are actually committing rape.

Proof that Problem Exists: according to the FBI, a survey was conducted on rape and it showed that in the US, every six minutes, a woman is raped somewhere by someone. An-Nahar Newspaper, on the other hand, reported that the year 1998 witnessed about 308 reported cases of rape or attempted rape in Lebanon. Many other cases, however, are not reported because the victim is treated as if she were responsible for the crime.

Relation of Problem to Audience: I am sure that none of you approves of rape, but do you think that by simply disapproving you will have solved the problem? Not at all. You are responsible as citizens to do something more powerful in order to put an end to this problem.

Satisfaction Step:

Rape as a crime taking place in our society cannot and should not be approved or accepted. There should be a solution to this problem and this can be achieved through a plan of action.

Plan of Action: To fight rape, the laws should be restrictive and more importantly, rape crimes should be considered seriously, and victims should be compensated.

Explanation of Plan: In Lebanon, the law requires sending the rapist to jail for five to seven years, but usually, most rapists spend only two years in jail. This is not enough. What we need is to enforce serious laws, such as sentencing the rapist to ten years in jail because stricter laws are more effective in maintaining social order and protecting people.

Secondly, there should be more agencies in Lebanon to deal with rape victims. According to Martha Hopkins in her book, The Psychology of Women, most rape victims are afraid of reporting at a police station where only strong and aggressive men are going to listen to them. Special rape-care centers should be open in police stations in order to deal with these victims.

And finally, victims of rape should be compensated by the rapist for the crime he committed. Many of these victims are not able to go back to work or to their normal lives for a while because of the trauma inflicted on them. It is therefore the responsibility of the rapist to compensate them for this loss.

Refuting Arguments Against the Plan:

Some people may argue that we should sentence rapists to death, but this is not realistic because with such a very harsh punishment, many judges will not convict rapists, and will let them free again on the streets. Some may argue that the problem can be solved if the rapist agrees to marry his victim. This was the case in Egypt before the death penalty was applied, as reported in As-Safire Newspaper. However, this means putting a lot of pressure on women to marry those who raped them in order to protect their reputation in society.

Visualization Step:

Rape is not a sexual adventure for man. It is a crime. It is a serious crime where woman is the victim. It is not only an attack against the body of the woman, but also a destruction of her soul and humanity. This crime has to be punished severely, and society has to be more sensitive in dealing with rape victims.

Action Step: The plan of action that I have just mentioned cannot be carried out on its own. It requires your support and involvement. Please think well of what it means to protect a rape victim and decide for yourself.

Summary: There will be some time in the future when rape victims will not be treated as criminals, and hopefully, some time in the future when rape crimes will no more be committed in our country.

Bibliography

Martha Hopkins. The Psychology of Rape. New York: Best Books Inc., 1996.

James M. Henslin. Social Problems. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, Inc., 1995.

As-Safire Newspaper. April 8, 1999.

An-Nahar Newspaper. February 18, 1999.

“The clock of violence.” FBI online, 1999.